Joe Arpaio Wants Everyone to Know There Are People Who Treat Kids Worse Than He Does

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio -- whose likeness you may have seen on the cover of a recent issue of New Times with the phrase, "To Hell With the Children!" -- wants everyone to know his deputies found people who treat kids worse than he does.

According to the sheriff's office, deputies pulled over a couple vehicles full o' illegal immigrants last night and found two kiddos in there -- a brother and sister, ages 5 and 6.

The sheriff's office says the parents didn't come with the youngsters to the U.S., the kids didn't know which state they were being taken to, and they didn't know any of the 20 other people they were with.

Arpaio is now using these AWOL parents as examples of people who treat kids worse than he does.

"How ironic that only last week I was publicly criticized for how I treat children who are here in this country illegally," Arpaio says. "Will there be any public outrage about how these parents treated these particular children? I doubt it."

Arpaio's referencing a pair of protests, described by the sheriff's office as "large-scale protests reported by the local media as being coordinated and staged by special interests groups outside of Arizona."